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Editing

You’ve drafted your content. Congratulations! Now it’s time to edit. But what type of content editing do you need?

Question 1—What is the state of your content?

Initial Draft. You wrote the content quickly and cleaned up the glaring mistakes. There may be grammar, punctuation, or spelling issues.

Middle-of-the-Road Draft. The content is in pretty good shape, having been through a few revisions.

Advanced Draft. You’ve checked all the facts and refined the text. The format matches your brand.

Question 2—What type of content editing do you need?

Copyediting

Editorial Freelancers Association (EFA) says that “Copyeditors correct spelling, grammar, usage, and punctuation, check cross-references, and prepare the style sheets that guide consistency and accuracy across the manuscript.” The copyeditor looks at the mechanics and makes sure the style is consistent.

Developmental or Substantive Editing

During this process, editors rewrite and revamp the text. (EFA) In this stage, editors may move paragraphs or entire sections around. Or, editors may re-order a group of procedures to match the workflow.

Research/Fact-checking

As the writer, we’re sometimes more focused on expressing the point than verifying quotes or historical information. If we’ve included graphs or illustrations, we might figure we’ll check the copyright or ownership later. An editor is the writer’s impartial researcher who will check historical information or other facts for accuracy. Researching also involves obtaining permission to use the illustration, graph, or chart.

Technical Editing

Technical editors review “scientific, engineering, medical, or other complex documents for both language and content issues.” (STC Technical Editing SIG) These editors focus on the purpose and how the reader will use that content. As such, technical editors copyedit. They may also make substantive edits, revise, and proofread.

In other cases, technical editors move beyond editing the written word. They may also be called in to edit instructional video scripts and usability testing content.

It’s the end of the calendar year. Time for a writing and editing business roll call.

I write down the goals. Make a list of the tasks. Cross off and re-write. Proofreading and editing the list helps, yet I realize have competing priorities. Maybe if I take a roll call, like we did at summer camp, I can organize this list!

Background

At summer camp, we had roll call each morning; all bunks had to be around the flagpole before breakfast. The bugle sounded, and the head counselor called out each bunk’s name. The idea was to make sure everyone was awake, dressed, and ready for the day’s activities. Some mornings, it was a challenge to get my teenage campers out on time. But if we were going on a day trip, the girls jumped up, dressed, and were out in a jiffy, without any coaxing.

As I think of my business tasks, part of me feels like the girls who moved slowly. Those girls took their time to dress and leave the bunk. I’d often have to cajole them to get up. I want to organize the files for the new year, but my desk—and my laptop—are piled with files. I need to toss, delete, or file so I can make room for the new year’s files and folders.

Then there’s the energized part of me, just like the girls who jumped up at the sound of reveille, dressed, and bounded out of the bunk. I’ve written down my new goals and am ready to tackle them!

Most of my campers, though, dressed at a normal pace, and were outside on time. I’m like those girls who didn’t rush or dawdle. I have business goals to meet, daily client work, and the hum-drum personal tasks. I wonder, though, how I can organize these competing activities for the new year.

After the rousing cheers and camp rules, Jared kicked off the day with “Insecure & Unintuitive: How We Need to Fix the UX of Security.” Through humor (cats are the hackers) and serious research studies, Jared showed us that the log-on dialog box is the most expensive section of the website. Users can’t recall passwords and recalling the credentials results in lost productivity and could result in security breaches.

News Item!

New regulation passes; organizations must have updated HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) policies that comply with the regulation by January 1 of next year.

You look at the item and think, “I’ve got 12 months. Nothing to do right now. I’ll calendar six months from now to look at this. How much could this new regulation impact the policies in my company?”

A lot! Think major legal ramifications. Or possibly privacy and security risks to the company. Depending on the regulation and the scope, there could be a substantial impact.

When do you start? In this scenario, it’s probably best to start within a month of reading the news item.

How? With a policy analysis.

The Policy Analysis Setting

My healthcare client brought me in as the consultant to conduct a policy analysis. Although I start projects with a needs analysis, the client had already performed that task internally. The client identified the key players for the project, had determined that the policies were out-of-date, and pinpointed the projected location of the policies (a shared library). Since the client operated in the United States, regulations included HIPAA, the HITECH Act (Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health), and state privacy laws.

Approval, training, and publication responsibilities rested with the client.

Step 1: Inventory the Policies

I made sure I had received all the policies for the project. To do that, I repeated my question a few times to the project manager/client contact. The repetition yielded fruit: Although most of the policies were in the shared library, there were a few “homegrown” policies related to the project in department shared drives.

Along with the client, we identified the regulations that impacted these policies. In this scenario, we looked at HIPAA, the HITECH Act, and the state privacy requirements for this client. Example: California has some requirements that differ from the federal regulations; state law takes precedence.

Step 2: Map the Existing Policies to the Regulations

Once we identified the regulations, I created an Excel spreadsheet with columns for the regulations and for the client’s policy. The purposes for the spreadsheet: 1) Create an inventory and 2) Provide the client with a visual of the state of their policies relative to the regulations.

The spreadsheet included this data: HIPAA Standard and/or Implementation Specification; client’s policy title; client’s policy number; effective date; date approved; last date updated, and the approver’s name/title. To map the client’s information, I read through each policy. In some cases, policy text that the client had mapped to one Standard mapped to a different Standard, and I recorded those differences.

Part of the analysis included highlighting the missing policies. That way we could easily identify the deficiencies.

Step 3: Create a Complete Set of Policies

Once I had the map, I developed a full set of policies. Where the client had no policies, I provided a template version that matched the regulation, including references that matched their organizational structure/nomenclature (example: Medical Records instead of Health Information Management). For policies that needed updating, I edited the client’s existing policies, including the latest regulatory language.

I sent the full set of policies to the client’s project manager for review. After their review, the project manager sent me changes related to specific processes/department names/approver information. I revised the policies and sent the client the final version.

What I Learned About Policy Analysis

Have an approved project plan, using the organization’s standard process. Minimally include these stages: Analysis, Develop, Review, Approve, Publish, Implement, and Evaluate.

Identify the federal and state regulations. While the project focused on HIPAA, some of the payment policies might have been impacted by PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard). I pointed that fact out to the client, explaining that a consultant certified in PCI DSS process review those policies for compliance.

Mapping is tedious, yet produces a clear picture of the status of the policies.

Compare the last date documentation was reviewed with the latest version of the regulations.

Help the client streamline their approval process by identifying the individuals best qualified to review and approve the policies.

Include this information either on the individual policies or in a summary policy: Approver, Date Approved, Date Reviewed, Review Cycle/Next Review Date (annual, biennial or an exact month and year).

I could—and did—use this method to map procedures, SOPs, and policies related to other regulations.

Back Story

I had the assignment and clear instructions. How do I jump-start the writing?

My first procedure assignment was to document the mortgage default process in various disaster scenarios. My mentor and I had met with the SMEs (subject matter experts) in Collections, Loss Mitigation, and Foreclosure. We had the notes. It was my job to write the initial draft.

I stared at the blank screen, unable to type anything. How do I tackle the assignment? Where do I start?

Can’t start at the beginning…I don’t even know where that is!

I picked a few phrases from the notes and typed the middle steps of the mortgage default process. I ignored the Critique Committee that yelled, “That’s the middle. Start at the beginning!” I kept typing. Ultimately, I reordered the messy first draft. It was time to share my first efforts with my mentor.

My mentor attacked the draft, crossing out sentences and sometimes an entire section. Then she looked at me and said, “You must think I didn’t like what you wrote, huh?”

Meekly, I responded, “Um, yeah. It appears that way.”

“Oh, but that’s not accurate. This is great stuff!”

“How could that be if you crossed out the text and moved sentences around?”

“Because you got us started. I couldn’t even do that! I couldn’t figure out where to start the procedures! Now let’s figure out how we’re going to reorganize the document and provide the clients with what they need.”

How had I started? Based on what I’d learned from Writing Down the Bones and Bird by Bird. Pick any point and start crafting a sentence. Write the next point. Keep going. Edit and reorganize later.

**

Here are my go-to sources to jump-start writing assignments. Note: Although these resources focus on creative writing or memoirs, I use the same techniques to document procedures, policies, work instructions, and even workflows. Yes! I’ve started workflows in the middle and worked backwards!

Sure, in a technical document we need a logical process and conclusion. If we’re documenting How to Cook a Hamburger, we don’t start with Buy a Lamp Chop. Yet what if we’re describing a new process we’re not familiar with? Or what might happen if while we describe the process, we uncover inconsistencies? Or perhaps we find ways to improve the process? True, we started with How to Cook a Hamburger; yet in the process, we might realize we’re documenting How to Cook a Hamburger on a Grill.

Uncovering Inconsistencies.

This is exactly what happened while documenting the mortgage default process. Collections SMEs told me that they gave the files (in the years of hard-copy files) to Foreclosure. Foreclose SMEs told me they received files from Loss Mitigation. Ummm….just where did you guys get your files from? We had to backtrack and create the Life of a Mortgage File process flow to understand the steps.

We ended up with a banquet!

Begin with a Few Words; Rewrite

Having trouble getting started? Anne’s advice: “Plug your nose and jump in, and write down all your memories as truthfully as you can.” (p. 4) While she’s talking about writing a memoir, the method words for any writing. Assessment reports record the findings from an in-person survey. The factual information and customized recommendations were not the basis of a novel. Yet the method worked. I used to plug my nose, jump into the deep end, and record the findings. As I wrote, ideas for recommendations tailored to the company appeared on the page.

Does everything come out perfectly the first time? No. “Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. You need to start somewhere.” On pp. 25-26, Anne outlines the purposes of drafts (adapted here):

Draft 1: Get the subject down on paper (or the screen). Quiet the Critique Committee.

Remove Cluttered Language

Zinsser’s classic “… is a craft book. … a book that would teach the craft of writing warmly and clearly…” (p. xi) Writing still requires “plan old hard work—clear thinking—and the plain old tools of the English language.” (p. xii) Zinsser discusses his growth and the technological innovations since he first wrote the book in 1976; he expanded and published newer editions. Zinsser’s last version, 30th anniversary edition, was published in 2006.

“Clutter is the laborious phrase that has pushed out the short word that means the same thing.” (p. 14, 25th ed.) “Clutter is the ponderous euphemism that turns a slum into a depressed socioeconomic area…” (p. 14 ibid) He counsels us to “beware, then, of the long word that’s no better than the short word: ‘assistance’ (help), “numerous” (many)…” (p. 16 ibid). Zinsser charges us to simplify the language.

How? Here’s the method Zinsser used with his Yale students: (p. 17 ibid)

Bracket the superfluous word, phrase, or even paragraphs.

“Read the sentence without the bracketed material and see if it works.”

Ask yourself these questions: (p. 17)

“Is every word doing new work?”

“Can any thought be expressed with more economy?”

“Is anything pompous or pretentious or faddish?”

“Are you hanging on to something useless just because you think it’s beautiful?”

Develop a Writing Practice

Writing—any type of writing—builds my abilities and improves the craft. Find a time, place, and space; make it a ritual, a writing practice.

Challenged by selecting a topic? “For many people inspiration is the key.” (p. 5) But what if I’m not inspired? What happens when I’m tasked with writing dry procedures? Think: How to Send a Secure Text Message or Patient Instructions for MRIs of the Feet. “…it is also important to learn to inspire yourself. Surround yourself with music, color, scents, poetry, or quotations that inspire you and make you feel good. The more inspired you feel, the more inspired your writing will be.” (p. 5)

I have colorful paintings on my walls. The room fills with the sunlight that warms my back as I type. When I need an inspiration break, I walk out onto the porch, and survey the greenery: rejuvenated lavender; purple-tinged succulents; small green tree in the clay pot, and the flower-shaped succulent. I then look up at the light blue sky. Somewhere between the white cotton candy clouds, inspiration hits or the next step in the process I’m writing becomes clear.

Inspired, I return to write.

Summary

Just start writing about the topic.

Begin with a few words and keep writing; revise later.

Remove the cluttered language.

Develop a writing practice.

**

On Why Writing Matters–A Postscript

Regardless of genre, I need to remember why I write. Because writing touches something inside me and I want to share that piece with others.